This week, lawmakers representing Oklahoma once again garnered national attention with outspoken rhetoric that sheds less than positive light on the state. Sen. Markwayne Mullin, in an appearance on CNN’s State of the Union, exchanged tense words with co-host Jake Tapper on several key issues. Sporting a Mullin Ranch jacket on national television, Mullin refuted […]
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A fair election process for all
I’m a lifelong Oklahoman and a former educator. I also had the privilege of serving in our State Senate for six years. I believed then and now that people should always come before politics. Unfortunately, I had a front-row seat to how our current election system is failing voters. In fact, our closed primary system […]
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Swift expansion
For the past year, a fleet of charcoal-colored buses have zipped along much of Classen Boulevard and Northwest Expressway as part of Oklahoma City’s first bus rapid transit line. Using some bus-only lanes and traffic signal prioritization, the new bus line is meant to somewhat mimic a subway or streetcar. Fares are paid before boarding, […]
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Airspace hazard
A developer’s quest to build the nation’s tallest building in Oklahoma City is receiving pushback from the city’s airport agency, which claims it might be too tall for approaching airplanes to navigate. At 1,907 feet, the proposed Legends Tower would be twice as tall as any building in the city and serve as a monument […]
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Virtually dropkicked
Have you ever wanted something as badly as Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters wanted to be Donald Trump’s education secretary? Sadly, Walters’ dream of moving from making videos from the front seat of his Camry to tweeting in the back of a limo with the president-elect won’t come to be. Trump chose Linda McMahon, the […]
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Model voting?
It was another good election for Oklahoma Republicans, who didn’t have to stay up late on Election Day last month to learn they would remain in power. Not only was that outcome expected, but the state’s election results typically get posted within a few hours of the polls closing. In recent years, as some swing […]
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Red herrings
It’s the most wonderful time of year: crazy bill filing season! As another legislative session approaches, many of Oklahoma’s nuttiest lawmakers will start filing bills with no chance of passage in the hopes of drumming up headlines, which many news outlets will happily oblige. These crazy bills give some lawmakers a chance to go back […]
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Religious teachings
Days after being sued by a group of parents objecting to his effort to put a Bible in every Oklahoma classroom, State Superintendent Ryan Walters compared himself to one of America’s greatest historical figures. “Martin Luther King, Jr. … broke the law to advocate for the Civil Rights Movement because, as a Christian, he believed […]
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Sinking Canoo?
In a real-life version of the “distracted boyfriend meme,” Gov. Kevin Stitt has spent much of his tenure turning his head away from his petroleum overlords to check out the electric vehicle craze. After failing to get Tesla and Volkswagen to open EV plants in the state, Stitt finally landed Canoo. The startup company agreed […]
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Shades of red
Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt made headlines last month after penning an endorsement for Vice President Kamala Harris, rejecting his own party’s nominee, Republican Donald Trump. Except “endorsement” isn’t the word Holt would use. His column, published in the Philadelphia Citizen, focused on his desire to see a president with “character, competence and commitment.” “I […]